73 research outputs found
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The Whole Brain Activity Map: Merging Nanoscience and Neuroscience for Technology and Health
The ultimate goal of this project is to construct the functional connectome map of the human brain, by assembling a coordinated network of researchers deploying next—generation nanotechnological tools with unprecedented capabilities. Mapping the functional connectome will unravel the fundamental, long-sought paradigms of how the brain computes. Together with these new technologies, this will enable accurate diagnosing, and restoring, of normal patterns of activity to injured or diseased brains; will foster the development of broader biomedical and environmental applications; and will produce a host of associated economic benefits
The Brain Activity Map Project and the Challenge of Functional Connectomics
The function of neural circuits is an emergent property that arises from the coordinated activity of large
numbers of neurons. To capture this, we propose launching a large-scale, international public effort, the Brain
Activity Map Project, aimed at reconstructing the full record of neural activity across complete neural circuits.
This technological challenge could prove to be an invaluable step toward understanding fundamental and
pathological brain processes
The genome of the jellyfish Aurelia and the evolution of animal complexity
We present the genome of the moon jellyfish Aurelia, a genome from a cnidarian with a medusa life stage. Our analyses suggest that gene gain and loss in Aurelia is comparable to what has been found in its morphologically simpler relatives—the anthozoan corals and sea anemones. RNA sequencing analysis does not support the hypothesis that taxonomically restricted (orphan) genes play an oversized role in the development of the medusa stage. Instead, genes broadly conserved across animals and eukaryotes play comparable roles throughout the life cycle. All life stages of Aurelia are significantly enriched in the expression of genes that are hypothesized to interact in protein networks found in bilaterian animals. Collectively, our results suggest that increased life cycle complexity in Aurelia does not correlate with an increased number of genes. This leads to two possible evolutionary scenarios: either medusozoans evolved their complex medusa life stage (with concomitant shifts into new ecological niches) primarily by re-working genetic pathways already present in the last common ancestor of cnidarians, or the earliest cnidarians had a medusa life stage, which was subsequently lost in the anthozoans. While we favour the earlier hypothesis, the latter is consistent with growing evidence that many of the earliest animals were more physically complex than previously hypothesized
The Brain Activity Map
Neuroscientists have made impressive advances in understanding the microscale function of single neurons and the macroscale activity of the human brain. One can probe molecular and biophysical aspects of individual neurons and also view the human brain in action with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or magnetoencephalography (MEG). However, the mechanisms of perception, cognition, and action remain mysterious because they emerge from the real-time interactions of large sets of neurons in densely interconnected, widespread neural circuits
A National Network of Neurotechnology Centers for the BRAIN Initiative
We propose the creation of a national network of neurotechnology centers to enhance and accelerate the BRAIN Initiative and optimally leverage the effort and creativity of individual laboratories involved in it. As ‘‘brain observatories,’’ these centers could provide the critical interdisciplinary environment both for realizing ambitious and complex technologies and for providing individual investigators with access to them
The genome of the jellyfish Aurelia and the evolution of animal complexity
We present the genome of the moon jellyfish Aurelia, a genome from a cnidarian with a medusa life stage. Our analyses suggest that gene gain and loss in Aurelia is comparable to what has been found in its morphologically simpler relatives—the anthozoan corals and sea anemones. RNA sequencing analysis does not support the hypothesis that taxonomically restricted (orphan) genes play an oversized role in the development of the medusa stage. Instead, genes broadly conserved across animals and eukaryotes play comparable roles throughout the life cycle. All life stages of Aurelia are significantly enriched in the expression of genes that are hypothesized to interact in protein networks found in bilaterian animals. Collectively, our results suggest that increased life cycle complexity in Aurelia does not correlate with an increased number of genes. This leads to two possible evolutionary scenarios: either medusozoans evolved their complex medusa life stage (with concomitant shifts into new ecological niches) primarily by re-working genetic pathways already present in the last common ancestor of cnidarians, or the earliest cnidarians had a medusa life stage, which was subsequently lost in the anthozoans. While we favour the earlier hypothesis, the latter is consistent with growing evidence that many of the earliest animals were more physically complex than previously hypothesized
A proposal for a coordinated effort for the determination of brainwide neuroanatomical connectivity in model organisms at a mesoscopic scale
In this era of complete genomes, our knowledge of neuroanatomical circuitry
remains surprisingly sparse. Such knowledge is however critical both for basic
and clinical research into brain function. Here we advocate for a concerted
effort to fill this gap, through systematic, experimental mapping of neural
circuits at a mesoscopic scale of resolution suitable for comprehensive,
brain-wide coverage, using injections of tracers or viral vectors. We detail
the scientific and medical rationale and briefly review existing knowledge and
experimental techniques. We define a set of desiderata, including brain-wide
coverage; validated and extensible experimental techniques suitable for
standardization and automation; centralized, open access data repository;
compatibility with existing resources, and tractability with current
informatics technology. We discuss a hypothetical but tractable plan for mouse,
additional efforts for the macaque, and technique development for human. We
estimate that the mouse connectivity project could be completed within five
years with a comparatively modest budget.Comment: 41 page
Courtship behavior of brain mosaics in Drosophila
0167-7063 (Print) Journal Article Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tSites in the brain that show functional, sexual dimorphism in courtship behavior have been mapped at high resolution in male/female mosaics of Drosophila melanogaster. The sex mosaics were produced by enhancer-trap expression of GAL4 driving the female-spliced form of the transformer gene (tra), revealing sites in the dorsal brain, lateral protocerebrum, suboesophageal, thoracic and abdominal ganglia, and suggesting the importance of cross-talk between these regions in the implementation of the courtship sequence
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